This Was Built by Skyfire

"Ha ha ha, this is fantastic! Which genius prepared every device I needed? They're all old models, but they actually have ports I can use. Could the original owner of this base have been a Decepticon aircraft too?"

What a coincidence. It seemed that the original builder of this Decepticon outpost had also been a Decepticon aircraft warrior. The remaining charging equipment could be used directly by Starscream without any modifications, which delighted him immensely.

"Mr. Starscream, would you like to learn about this station's history? If you wish to search through previous records, please connect to the main computer!"

Well, Starscream really did need that. He wanted to find out which predecessor had built this place. If he happened to run into them on Cybertron someday, perhaps he could thank them in person.

Moreover, following Starscream's orders, the Decepticon outpost had automatically activated energy collection mode. While waiting, there was nothing wrong with Starscream looking into this base's past.

"No problem. Confirm data connection!"

He acted immediately. Starscream extended his right hand, and a black data cable stretched out from his forearm, directly connecting to a keyhole-like recess beneath the large screen. Streams of data formed from binary code began appearing before Starscream's eyes.

One name in particular surprised Starscream. It was likely a famous veteran Decepticon warrior, one who had vanished many years ago. He had never expected that this Decepticon outpost had actually been built by that guy!

"Skyfire? You're saying this outpost was built by Skyfire? No wonder it has energy connection ports for aircraft Transformers. That guy used to be an elite aerospace warrior too, right?"

This was quite an unexpected gain. Tens of thousands of years later, the name Skyfire would be so imposing that even Megatron would tremble upon hearing it!

Not only was that guy a senior figure among the Decepticons, his combat strength was exceptionally formidable. Skyfire was also huge, often serving as a transport aircraft behind enemy lines.

Of course, if anyone wanted to make an enemy of Skyfire, they first had to consider whether their defenses were strong enough. This veteran Decepticon warrior had an incredibly fierce fighting style!

"Yes, Mr. Starscream. This Decepticon outpost and all the equipment here were built by Mr. Skyfire. The system's open access authorization was also granted by Mr. Skyfire!"

Decepticon warriors were generally selfish, so someone as generous as Skyfire was truly rare. The Autobots, on the other hand, seemed to have quite a few warriors of that sort.

Unfortunately, Skyfire had not returned to Cybertron for a very long time. It seemed that even if Starscream wished to express his gratitude, he would have no chance to do so for now.

"All right! How is your oil extraction plan progressing? I'm getting rather eager to taste the purity of this planet's energy. If there's already output, let me have a taste first!"

Although Starscream still had enough energy in his body, his curiosity toward this planet's resources made him want to taste the energy produced by the oil while the system continued extracting it.

"No problem. Mr. Starscream, please connect your energy absorption port. Our energy conversion system is now ready to begin operating!"

Excellent. That black liquid called oil looked rather dirty, but when properly processed, it could generate vast amounts of thermal energy. Through a certain energy extraction model, it could then be converted into universal energy usable by Transformers.

The moment Starscream tasted it, he immediately felt an intoxicating rush, while the Ever-Changing Steel System began synchronously receiving the energy data.

"Host, it seems we both underestimated this planet. The energy contained on this planet is no worse than that of Cybertron, especially this substance called oil. It can generate such pure thermal energy. It appears these carbon-based lifeforms are far more complex than we had imagined, though their civilization will still require a long process to develop!"

Compared to Starscream, the recipient of this energy, the Ever-Changing Steel System seemed even more fascinated by this method of converting black energy. Moreover, according to the intelligence previously provided by that mechanical dinosaur, there were many similar black energy sources on this planet.

That raised suspicions. Could it be that Skyfire and those mechanical dinosaurs had not come to this planet merely to idle around? Perhaps they had come here to develop new energy sources. If that were the case, everything made sense, including the establishment of this Decepticon outpost and the cultivation of a certain degree of faith among these ordinary humans.

"Heh, I never expected that old fellow Skyfire to be so pioneering. He actually discovered a planet like this in the distant Milky Way. But why have I never read about this black energy source in Cybertron's database? If Megatron knew about it, he would definitely claim this planet for himself!"

Feeling the surging power within his body, Starscream immediately felt that he had struck it rich today. But normally, whenever Decepticon pioneers discovered a new energy planet, they would certainly report it to Cybertron. That custom applied both during the Autobots' rule and during the Decepticons' current occupation.

If anyone discovered a new energy source and failed to report it to Megatron, they would be in serious trouble if that guy found out. Unless something unexpected had happened to Skyfire back then, or he had been interfered with by some outside force—those were all suspicious points!

"Host, don't you find this strange? That mechanical dinosaur previously revealed information about oil to us, and Skyfire had already begun extracting this energy centuries ago. Yet there are no related reports whatsoever on Cybertron. What exactly went wrong?"

According to current Decepticon regulations, whoever discovered a new energy planet would receive thirty percent of that planet's energy extraction rights as long as they promptly reported it to Cybertron. That was an extremely generous share, and those extraction rights were fully protected by the Decepticons.

Any ambitious Decepticon lord would surely rack his brains trying to get involved in something like that!